Maid of Honor
by PetruchioVerona
Summary: Thayet, Queen of Tortall, reclined in her chair and cackled to herself in a most un-queen-like manner. Thayet receives Buri's resignation from the Queen's Riders, so that she can meet a certain Knight Commander at Northwatch. Raoul/Buri, written as canon as possible, borrowing some scenes and paraphrasings from Squire & Lady Knight. First story by this author - feedback wanted!


_First attempt at writing with Tamora Pierce's characters – I don't own them (though I would love to be friends). Enjoy!_

_Set with vignettes from the end of Lioness Rampant, to action that would happen between The Immortals and Protector of the Small, real scenes from Squire (with some paraphrasing), and finishing around the epilogue of Lady Knight_

Thayet, Queen of Tortall, sometimes known as 'The Peerless', reclined in her chair and cackled to herself in a most un-queen-like manner. Jonathan IV, King of Tortall, looked up from the other side of the comfortable yet functional room they shared as their private office.

"Something is funny, and you're not sharing. I call that cruel, my dear. I'm _still_ sifting through all these reports on that beyond-the-border Scanran expedition, and you _know_ I could use a laugh."

Thayet smiled at her husband, and brandished a note. "Buri sent this over. She's officially resigned as Commander of the Riders, and passed her post on to Evin."

Jon cocked an eyebrow. "You know I'm happy to hear that she'll get some rest, but I fail to see the humor."

The Queen smiled like the cat that'd got both the cream and the canary. "I also have a note from Shinko- Yuki has booked her passage on one of the ships going north. Buri is going with her to Steadfast."

Coal-black hair fell backwards as Jon joined his Queen in the kind of merriment that can only arise from the anticipation of years.

Thayet recalled the first moment that she and her oldest companion had started working with the Knight Commander.

It had been several months after the royal wedding, when the festivities had finally ceased and she had time to be more personally involved in her new creation, the Queen's Riders. It had been her idea to start a more guerilla-style force, modeled after the K'mir tribes and fighting styles. Buri had contributed the importance of having good mounts- not full horses, but ponies, with increased mobility and agility. While Thayet had gotten acquainted with the courts, scribes, and the other administrative elements of Tortall, Buri had been recruiting their core staff. Thanks to their ties with Alanna, the King's Champion, her adoptive father Myles of Olau, and her husband, the Baron of Pirate's Swoop, Buri was able to find the kind of people she needed to make their force a new type of weapon for the Crown and the realm.

But before their weapon could be used, they had to convince the Crown's other protectors that there was merit in their strategy.

Jonathan had insisted that the King's Own and the Queen's Riders be properly introduced. "The king and queen are partners, their fighters must be too," he'd said, or something like that. Buri had insisted that Thayet be present. While she would never worry about her personal skill as a fighter, she could never be comfortable with the nobles in this country. And that first meeting had been disastrous. Glaisdan of Haryse, Captain of First Company, would speak with Thayet as the Queen, but as Commanders of the Riders, the Captain was indifferent at best. He did not know of K'mir fighting styles and did not wish to; he did not trust in the ability of two women to be co-commanders of an entire force and would not risk his soldiers; and on and on until both women thought they might scream, or possibly use Haryse for target practice.

As the crimson flags on Thayet's cheeks grew more and more pronounced, a large man interrupted the meeting. He was tall, at least two heads taller than Buri, with curly black hair and a tanned face. Buri had noted his muscles – as a warrior, she'd insisted – as those that saw daily, hard use. This was no lily-fingered noble – this was a fighter.

"Glaisdan, I thought I asked you to wait for me! I'm sorry, Your Majesty, my men and I only got back from the desert last night, and the messenger to my rooms seems to have gotten lost."

He extended a callused hand to the women. "I'm Raoul. Glaisdan here is one of my finest captains, but he sometimes leaves something to be desired with tact."

Thayet smiled to see one of her husband's best friends. "Good to see you, my lord-"

"Please, just Raoul – you know I can't stand that kind of ceremony between friends."

"If you insist, Raoul. I know you two have met each other casually in the past, but may I formally introduce my co-commander and friend, Buriram Tourakom? And this is Raoul of Goldenlake, Knight Commander of the King's Own."

Raoul exchanged a firm handshake with the much shorter, golden-skinned woman. "I've heard quite a lot about you – Alanna told me that you're the finest shot in the Eastern Lands, and that's no small praise coming from her." Turning, he looked at his captain, who still regarded the women with an air of boredom. He noted the still-fading red cheeks on the women's faces, and immediately understood. "Glaisdan, if you would excuse us."

Haryse gave a sniff, and exited the room.

"I apologize for him – he is a great soldier, but he's stuffier than I prefer in a one of my captains. But he's one of those Book of Gold nobles, and Jon insisted… ah, well. Royal politics," the big man sighed. He took a seat at the desk between him and the women, and leaned forward with an eager twinkle in his dark eyes.

"Now. I saw part of the original plans for your new group – the Riders, correct? The Own is all well and good, but I've been looking for a way to be a little more flexible with our strategies. Buri – I think it was your notes that were talking about using guerilla tactics against mobile foes – could you tell me more?"

Midwinter in Tortall was always one of Thayet's favorite times of the year. Sarain had had its balls and feasts, but they were state affairs – and there had not exactly been any tender family feelings. She'd celebrated K'mir holidays with her mother and her friends, but winter was mostly a time of being confined to a castle with a father who didn't want her.

The Midwinter after the Yamani delegation had arrived, with her daughter-in-law-to-be and her attendants joining the celebrations, had been her favorite so far. The ballroom was decorated in blends of Yamani and Tortallan decorations.

She'd seen Buri that night. Her oldest companion had taken the Queen up on an offer to get a dress made by Lalasa, and the red complimented her golden-brown skin perfectly.

"Look at you- once we get all that Rider mud off of you, you really do clean up well," she'd teased.

Buri had scowled and muttered again that state functions like these were a waste of her time.

Now, she was searching for her friend, as well as her son and his bride-to-be. She found a book room off to the side of chamber to reveal a small company. Shinkokami and Roald were there, looking more comfortable than they had since their first meeting, talking animatedly to Raoul, Raoul's squire Kel, and Buri herself.

Thayet entered the room gently, greeting the Baron and Baroness of Mindelan, Lady Hanane of the Yamani delegation and others as she listened with satisfaction to the engaged discussion of bandit chasing in Tortall and the Yamani Islands.

As a noble-born lady in Sarain, she had longed for the freedom of K'miri women to fight and defend their families and clans. When she'd discovered books about the noble Yamani ladies who were trained in self-defense, it had seemed like paradise – and the alliance signed between their Islands and her new homeland fulfilled a dream she'd thought she'd forgotten. And yet for all that, she understood Roald's nervousness when the arranged marriage was first declared. Hadn't she been relieved when it seemed that she would be able to live without a marriage of state?

But now, she noted with delight that her son was gazing at Shinkokami with admiration in his eyes, as she described in detail the many skirmishes she had been involved in at home.

Her eyes cast over the rest of the crowd to note another joyful fact. Just across from the prince and princess, Raoul and Buri were engaged in the avid discussion as well. Disregarding her lovely gown, Buri was balancing her feet (in dress boots, never those useless leather slippers) on a side table as she leaned her chair against Raoul's shoulder. The K'mir made some remark that set the small group to laughing as Raoul slung an arm around her shoulders.

Thayet barely managed to conceal her wide grin as she slipped back out into the party.

Thunder woke Thayet from dark shadows, bat wings, and talons. The Immortal's War, as they were calling it, had been over for no more than 5 months, and it still populated her dreams as fanged and clawed flying horses attacked the nursery over and over again. Wyldon of Cavall, despite his disagreement with her policies, had borne the brunt of the attack and saved her children, but Thayet had almost been too late to help. She still could not shake the guilt, despite the mind-healer's work.

The thunder continued, someone pounding on the bedchamber door. Jonathan sat up groggily next to her. He was a beautiful man, but morning was not his most flattering hour.

"Wassat? Whos'it?" he mumbled, struggling with the covers.

His Queen grabbed a robe and hurried to the door to reveal Buri.

"Distress call from a village in the Royal Forest. Immortals- we're not sure what kind. The Own has 3 squads leaving now, with 4 on standby. I'm getting the Dogs and Askew – we're leaving as soon as we can."

Thayet nodded, awakened fully by the report. "I'll be at the stables by the time you leave."

Buri was already off at a trot as the Queen closed the chamber door. She glanced at the bed to see Jon already asleep again. Shaking her head, she changed rapidly and grabbed her gear.

An hour's hard ride later, she paused to catch her breath as the local headman told the rescue force what was known. The news sent a shiver down her spine. No wonder the initial report was unclear – a group of the half-human, half-arachnids known as spidrens appeared to be working in tandems with the very creatures that caused her to lose so much sleep – the fanged, clawed horses known as hurroks. It was a relief to have Buri there to take charge, and even more of a relief to see the leader of the group of the Own. Raoul had come himself, with Flyndan at his side and the promised three squads behind him.

"The spidrens set their webs, these traps in th' trees, and the horse beasties came flyin' down to grab the poor bleaters who got stuck in 'em," a local hunter was telling the group. "I ain't ever seen anything like it. I didn't even know them hurroks could talk to the spidrens, what with their human heads an' all."

Raoul scowled. "I hate it when they learn new things. Couldn't we have had a little bit of rest after last summer?"

"And miss all this excitement?" Buri quipped. Raoul responded with a groan.

A day and a half later, exhausted and frustrated, the joint forces had managed to take down twelve of an estimated score and a half of hurroks plus almost twenty of the fifty spidrens, and they had recovered five of fifteen villagers taken by the beasts. Mud-covered and weary, they prepared for a last strike. It was a tricky location – the immortals had found a cavern with an opening at the top of a rocky hill. It must have been spidren planning – the hurroks were acting as flying sentries around the hideout that was the spidren nest. Thayet prayed fervently that some of the villagers were still living, and with all their limbs, but she knew the chances were low.

With Buri at her side, like always, Thayet urged their Rider groups into position. Their ponies were well hidden, and their bows were strung and ready. The squads of the Own would launch the frontal assault on the cave as the Riders focused on the airborne enemy. The signal for the attack came through the spelled pendant Buri carried. "Now!" she cried, as the men and women around them surged forward, aiming carefully.

The hurroks responded viciously. They swooped down on the company, trying to rake at armored skulls, front-set eyes rolling in their heads. Fighters shot and hit with deadly accuracy, hitting wing joints, throats, and eyes. After almost a year of fighting these deadly creatures, they had learned the weak spots of the flying immortals, and used them to their advantage as much as possible.

The spidrens had barely turned their attention to the Riders before being taken from behind by the Own riding up on their geldings, spears and swords flashing in the dying sunlight. They drove the spidrens towards the Riders, forcing them to be on defense from both sides.

A lull in the fighting almost let Thayet relax, until she saw a hurrok diving straight for one of the newest fighters – Loesia, just 15 years old, and distracted from the danger by fumbling with her arrows. Thayet's vision went dark with fear and rage as she leapt to the girl's defense, firing off arrows as fast as she could. The hurrok was on her, lashing out with talons the length of her hand. She dove, taken Loesia down with her, as the talons scraped the air just above their heads. A string of K'miri swears sounded around her as Buri saw Thayet's danger and joined the attack. The hurrok swooped down again, with two companions joining it.

Buri was a solid presence at Thayet's side as they faced the attack, when suddenly an ill-timed talon ripped through her leather jacket and opened a gash in the K'miri's shoulder, knocking her to the ground. Thayet blanched with fear. Not again – she would _not_ lose her best friend to these damn monsters. As she attacked with renewed fury, she heard the thunder of hooves as a dark gelding galloped over to join her and the prone figure below her.

"Buri!" a hoarse gasp cried. Raoul's face was dark with sweat and worry. As the hurroks wheeled to attack again, worry was replaced with fury. With a yell, he met the descending creature with a fatal blow from his axe, and caught a second in the wing. He continued to smash creatures aside with a concentrated viciousness, until the air was clear of hurroks.

Finally, the clamor of battle quieted. The Own had successfully taken out the spidren nest in the cave, and they were recovering the surviving villagers. Flyn came to Raoul to report.

"We've got 6 civilians still alive, sir. They're shook up but only mild injuries. All the hurroks and spidrens that were reported are down. More, actually."

Raoul listened without hearing. Chest heaving, he dismounted and rushed over to Thayet with bloodshot eyes.

"Buri- is she alright? Is she injured?" he croaked. Thayet was helping her guard sit up. Buri winced as she moved, her face as pale and strained as she pressed a pad of bandages against her still bleeding shoulder.

The big knight was at her unsupported side in a flash. "Flyn, I need Emmet here yesterday. Hurry!" Flyn rushed off, yelling for the healer Raoul had named.

Buri coughed. "It's not that bad, Raoul," she said weakly. "Just a scratch, really."

Dark eyes blazed with worry as the knight produced clean bandages from his own pack. "If that's a scratch, I'm a dancing bear. I know you want to protect Thayet, but you have to be _careful._"

"Funny, I've always thought of you like a fuzzy bear – though the dancing part is a bit more a stretched," Buri remarked, her eyes closing slightly.

Thayet saw that the new bandage was soaking through at an alarming rate. She swore in K'mir. "It's blood loss. She's losing some focus."

Raoul wrapped his arms around the small K'mir, holding her up while pressing the bandage down, not seeming to hear the Queen at all. "You're right, I can't dance," he said almost pleadingly. Thayet was shocked to note that his eyes seemed moist. "But I will try, just for you, only stay with me- with us. Focus, please, Buri. Don't die on us."

The healer arrived and got to work on her shoulder immediately, pushing both Thayet and Raoul out of the way, but neither went too far as they watched Emmet work to seal up skin. As the color returned to Buri's cheeks, Thayet snuck a look at Raoul. She was startled to see in his eyes a level of concern she herself felt.

Perhaps she didn't have to worry so much about Buri commanding on her own, not if there was someone else watching out for her just as closely.

Midwinter again, only this year had been… different. As was customary, Thayet and Jon had been in the Chapel of the Ordeal to see the future knights emerge. A young man did emerge, but not quietly, not calmly. Vinson of Genlith had collapsed on his knees on the cold flagstones, screaming "I confess! I confess!"

His audience had been a pain in her heart, sorrow for those poor girls, and fury that she had not been able to prevent it.

Those emotions, however, could not hold a candle to the worry she felt for her Roald the next day. She'd been there for Jon's Chamber nightmares – they still came even know, from the Ordeal of Knighthood and Kinghood alike. She knew that whatever happened in that room would strain Roald almost to a breaking point. Her relief as he emerged, worn but blessedly alive, and sane, was like a cool shower being poured over her head. _Mithros and_ _Horse Lords, thank you for giving him strength_, she murmured to herself. _Goddess, thank you for protecting my son_. She had thought that would be the worst of it. She was past the risk now – Roald was safe, and Vinson was surely the worst case that could out of this year's round of squires.

Until the next night.

She was there, of course. She had to be. She was not prepared to see the doors swing open by themselves. She was not prepared to see that pale face, surrounded by gold hair, looking even paler in death. She was not prepared for how the young lord of Stone Mountain would look in death. He was 18, of an age with her son, and here he lay, cold and lifeless, in the Chapel of the Ordeal.

Buri was able to visit that afternoon. The Queen's companion had been in the palace back during that eventful trial, when Joren had shamed the court and the realm, and Keladry had pleaded for a change in the law. Thayet had not _liked_ the arrogant lordling; she had despised the contempt his showed to women and lower classes alike. But she had never wished for his death.

Buri seemed shaken, but not surprised. "He was rotten, Thayet, you and I both knew it. He didn't believe other people were as human as he was."

"But what could have happened in there – what could he have experienced to lead to…that?"

"You know what they say about the Chamber- it's a hammer. It finds your weaknesses and hits hard." Her mouth was a firm line. "Somewhere, somehow, Joren became so rigid that Chamber shattered him."

Thayet held her face in her hands. "His poor parents, and family. To know that your boy took a bad turn when you weren't looking, to have to bury him on a day you had hoped to see him knighted – I can't begin to imagine how they feel."

"They're _feeling_ like conservative idiots. His uncle tried to attack Kel – Keladry of Mindelan – this morning, saying that she 'cursed' him, that it was somehow her fault that he went bad. All horse manure, of course – he just showed his worst face around her. She exposed all those prejudices he'd had all that time." Buri sighed. "She's probably still taking on the blame of if, just like with those poor girls Vinson attacked."

Thayet nodded. "I'd heard something, a rumor that he'd tried to attack Lalasa when she still worked for Keladry."

"I ran into her the other day, out in the Rider grounds, freezing her fingers off and hating herself for not reporting it at the time. Never mind that Lalasa had insisted that she not, or that he's getting a more-than-just punishment thanks to the Chamber's magic. These knights, and knights-in-training," she said with a grimace. "Their 'chivalry' will drive them mad."

They sat in silence a moment, Thayet contemplating the truth of this. Certainly she'd noticed that unwavering adherence in Jonathan, and many of the nobles that surrounded her. Then a thought occurred to her.

"Wait a moment – you said that Joren's uncle tried to attack Keladry? It's only been a couple hours, surely that isn't common knowledge in the palace, is it?"

"N-no, no, I just heard it from Raoul," Buri said, her cheeks turning the slightest bit pink.

"That's odd, Jon said he was complaining about being ordered to a family party last night. I'd think he would have stayed over there…" Thayet looked up at her friend. Blushing? Buri never blushed – and yet the pink was spreading and deepening. "Unless… he had a reason to want to be back in his own chambers…" she added with a barely concealed grin.

Buri colored darkly and muttered, "I should leave you to your work, I'll see you later, have a good day, happy Midwinter." In her haste to stand and leave the room, she knocked over her chair and nearly went sprawling.

"Buriram Tourakom, don't you dare run away from me," Thayet ordered playfully, not even bothering to conceal her glee. "Raoul didn't have to tell you about Buchard's intrusion this morning, did he? Because you were _there_."

Buri took one look at her oldest friend and Queen. Now red as a beet, she turned away and ran for the door, to the sound of royal cackling behind her.

The war with Scanra was starting to calm down, finally. Thanks to Keladry of Mindelan and her fierce loyalty to her refugees, the northern kingdom no longer had their vicious killing devices. Without them, raiding parties, even full army units were enemies that could be engaged, and defeated. All that was left was the ongoing siege at Frasrlund and occasional attacks at other forts.

Despite the increasing safety, the generals in charge of the northern defenses had still forbidden Thayet or Jon to come to Steadfast for the weddings taking place there, a fact that still chafed at the Queen's heart.

"Don't worry, Mother," Shinko told the Queen. The two women had become very close since her arrival in Tortall, and Shinko still delighted in being officially in the family since her and Roald's summer wedding. "You'll see them soon. And Yuki promised to use her mage-mirror to let us watch the ceremony."

Thayet smiled at her daughter-in-law. "But it's so harder to make Buri blush just through a mage-mirror. I wanted to be there to tell everyone stories of how many times she said she'd never be married to anyone, that she would just be a lady warrior and die honorably before anyone could annoy her with marriage proposals."

"Well, it's a good thing I made them both promise to have receptions with their friends here once the war is over and they're all home, isn't it?"

The Queen started, looking at the younger woman. Months ago, she would have thought the Yamani's blank face confusing. Now, she saw the crinkling around her lively eyes and grinned in return.

She'd always wanted to be a maid of honor.

_Please leave reviews – this is my first attempt at a story, and it ended up being longer than I planned._


End file.
